fullmetal miko
by bakugirl
Summary: Kagome is depressed because the well has sealed her off. so her mother has her childhood friends, Alphonse, Ed, and Winry pick her up, and take her to Amestris. but, what happens when Ed accidentally upsets her, and two homonculi force Ed to admit his feelings for her?(rating is for the later ch's.) (chapter 13 is up! :D)
1. Chapter 1

Fullmetal/EdxKag

CH. 1

heaving a heavy sigh, Kagome boarded the train, she hated to leave, what if Inuyasha came looking for her for Sesshomaru? what if the well let Shippo through? could they find her all the way out in Amestris? what if her scent was masked by the smoke from the train? what if it rained? what if-  
"-GOME!" a loud voice shook her from her thoughts. causing her to loudly squeak in terror, and curl into a ball on the closest seat to her.  
"oh, now look at what you did, Ed! you scared her!" Winry scolded slapping the blonde alchemist on the back of the head  
"are you alright?" Al's slightly echoed voice asked as he crouched in front of her seat  
she didn't say anything, she didn't even look at Al, "you must have really scared her, big brother"  
"god...you're worse than, HIM" Winry groaned, emphasizing the last word in reference to a certain dog-eared male.  
"what? how am I worse than that mutt, Inuyasha?!" Ed instantly regretted bringing up the dog's name in front of Kagome, because she began to openly cry. "Ka-Kagome...I-"  
"oh, Ed..." Winry heaved a long sigh, "see? you're just like the moronic mongrel. you need to at least think a LITTLE bit when you're around women!" Winry went to comfort Kagome. but she was stopped.  
"no, I caused this, I have to fix it..." Ed sighed, he wasn't stupid. he knew he had to fix what he did or Kagome would hate him, Al would be disappointed in him, and Winry would definitely kill him with a wrench. Roy would finish him off by burning him till he was nothing but ash.  
"Ed, don't you think you've-"  
"this is my fault. you know I have to try." "equivalent exchange" he added, "I hurt her, I have to be the one to make up for it."  
"ugh, EVERYTHING isn't about alchemy, you idiot!"  
"he does have a point though, Winry. he did upset her, so he has to make up for it or he'd never forgive himself for making her cry"  
"...I just said that, Al!"  
"I was saying it again, but so Winry can understand your point"  
"whatever, just...go oil your joints or something, I'd prefer to have some privacy with Kagome"  
"I'll help you, Al. besides, Ed's gonna be busy for a while."  
"yeah, okay."  
"geez...all of this cause I said his name" Ed groaned, taking the space next to the crying miko  
"he hates me!" Kagome sobbed, turning and clinging to his shirt like it was a life-line  
"what? Al doesn't-"  
"no, Inuyasha! Inuyasha hates me! he never loved me! but I was too stupid to realize it! why does this always happen to me, Ed?!"  
"I-...I don't know..." he had the strangest feeling to put her on his lap and hold her close.  
"even Koga has stopped chasing after me, sure I wasn't REALLY interested, but it was nice to get some attention!" she soon crawled into his lap, and cried into his chest before Ed could muster up the courage to move her, himself, "I honestly thought Inuyasha loved me! he said he'd stay by my side, and that he'd stay a hanyou longer just for me...and-and...OH! why would he do that?!"  
'shit, she's getting hysterical, what should I do?' "Ka-...Kagome?" he had no idea what he was going to do, but he had to get her to calm down, "Kagome, you-you can do so much better than that damned mutt"  
"like who?"  
"I dunno! like-" he didn't get the chance to finish his sentence when the train lurched to life, causing his head to move towards hers, and their lips met for just a second  
she looked shocked, but a few quick seconds later her cerulean eyes slowly closed, and she wrapped her arms around his neck, pulling him closer, deepening the moment. she was the first to pull away. she rested her forehead against Ed's, and smiled lazily, "I guess life in Amestris won't be too bad. thank you, Ed. you know, heh, Souta always said you had a crush on me. but I never believed him. I've never been happier to be proven wrong, but let's just keep that moment between us, my dad would burn you alive if he found out"  
"burn? you mean..."  
"yeah. Colonel Roy Mustang is my father."  
"but I thought your last name was-"  
"yeah, mama changed it back to Higurashi after Roy left a few years ago." she snuggled into his chest and let out a satisfied sigh moments later. Kagome was asleep by the time Al and Winry came back.  
"I don't hear her crying anymore, Winry"  
"yeah...that's either good or bad"  
"huh, how could it be bad?"  
"he could have made her run away while we were gone"  
"oh, that would be very bad."  
"she's right here." he smirked, "see? I told ya I could fix it!" he pulled Kagome slightly closer with his automail arm and rested his head against his palm as he stared out the window  
"so, how'd you do it? must have been something PRETTY special to get her THAT calm THAT fast." Winry smirked, she knew her friend well enough to know it took her a while to calm down.  
Ed blushed slightly, and turned further towards the window in hopes of hiding it.  
"what's the matter, big brother? ah! Winry!" the suit of armor would have smirked like a Cheshire cat if he could have. his voice carried that emotion well enough to make up for it  
"sh-shut up!" Ed stammered  
"hmm..." Kagome groaned softly, nuzzling further into his chest, "so warm..."  
"ohhh! I see..." Winry was practically buzzing with the effort to hold back her laughter. she knew Ed had a thing for the miko.  
"ugh! I said shut up!" Ed's face matched his red jacket  
"what? what?" Al was looking back and forth between his brother and Winry, "what do you see?"  
"your brother managed to calm Kagome down faster than I've ever been able to"  
"ok, but that doesn't explain why he's blushing"  
"Kagome doesn't calm down that fast, unless something PRETTY special happened."  
"like what?"  
"you're brother had to have admitted he's had a huge crush on her for years"  
"big brother!" Al sounded happy  
"I didn't SAY that."  
"then what DID happen?"  
"I...I...accidentally...k-" if any more blood had rushed to his face he would be a permanent tomato face, "kissed her" Ed's voice was barely audible  
"what?" Winry couldn't quite hear him  
"you...really?" Al, somehow, had heard him.  
"what'd he say?"  
"he kissed her"  
"WHAT?!" Winry then laughed, "wow! didn't think you-"  
"it was an accident!"  
"how was it an accident?"  
"the train lurched and she was sitting on my lap, it just...happened!"  
"ugh, that's bad..." Winry sighed  
"what? how?" Ed was confused, "I got her to calm down, didn't I?"  
"geez, Ed! women are more complex than that!"  
"DO you like her, brother?"  
"I'm not answering that" Ed deadpanned  
"well, she obviously thinks you do. to a woman, a kiss is an expression of love"  
"love? how could it mean love?" 'though, it DID feel pretty nice...'  
"you really ARE dense, aren't you, Ed? how can you be THIS oblivious?!"  
"about women? or about how you find some sort of crazy meaning in things?" Ed groaned, rolling his eyes, "it doesn't help that the only girl I was around when I was little was a psychotic, violent tomboy!"  
"nnng...huh?" Kagome groaned softly.  
"I'm not psychotic! and you were around Kagome a lot when we were little too!"  
"um, guys?" Al began noticing Kagome had woken up  
"not now, Al!" both blonde's said  
"still! all you women are insane! I didn't PLAN on kissing her! the train lurched and it just...happened! it's just skin contact, nothing more! you women always have to find some kind of "meaning" in everything!"  
"brother?"  
"what is it?" Ed looked at the suit of armor  
"Kagome's awake, brother"


	2. Chapter 2

Al pointed at the shocked miko in the blonde alchemist's lap

"you...you mean...so you...you don't really...I-I can't believe you did that!" Kagome stammered. tears began to prick at the corners of her eyes, she tried to push Ed away but his metal arm held her firmly in that spot

"see, Ed? it DOES have meaning, whether or not you know it." Winry sighed, "Kagome, it's not what it seems like. Ed's just...he's just stupid with women, he doesn't know the first thing about what men should never say."

"...you're no better than Inuyasha" Kagome sobbed.

Ed looked like she had slapped him, "Kagome, I'm not like that mutt!"

"keh, coulda fooled me, runt."

"HEY! WHO ARE YOU CALLING A RUNT?!" Ed yelled

"come on, let's get going, Kagome."

"Inu...yasha?" Kagome gasped.

"who else would I be?" he scoffed, crossing his arms

"oh, Inuyasha!" she pinched Ed's human arm slightly to make him let go.

"OW!"

she stood up but noticed the hanyou was missing two things, "Inuyasha? where's Tetsusaiga? a-and where's your rosary?"

"huh? what do you mean?" he looked himself over

"...your sword... and the beads that are around your neck? I'm the only one who can take them off, remember?"

"my-damnit, I knew I shoulda picked that damn kit" a red line of electricity scrolled down his form, revealing a boy with green and black hair, "come on, girlie you're coming with-"

"LIKE HELL SHE'S LEAVING WITH YOU, ENVY!" Ed screamed, clapping his hands together and pounding them against the wall of the train. a wall of metal blocked Envy's path while Al grabbed Kagome.

"E-Envy? who or...what is Envy?"

"you're kidding, right?" the homonculus laughed taken aback. "you HONESTLY don't know? you've never heard of me?"

"Kagome, come here" Ed told her. but she seemed hesitant. she was obviously still upset with him

"aww, did the pipsqueak upset you?" Envy teased, he knew Ed had a thing for the miko, it was painfully obvious.

"I'M NOT A PIPSQUEAK!" Ed yelled

"oh, Envy, why must you torment him? you know our target is the miko."

"yeah, well, how was I supposed to know she had a rosary on him?! or that he had a sword?"

"you could have done a little more research like you were told." Lust said as her nails became long and sharp

"ugh, you know I hate that, Lust. it's so tedious and boring"

"L-Lust? who-what are you people?!" Kagome was shocked.

"Kagome, you need to trust me! these two WILL kill you if they-"

"now, now fullmetal. we don't want to kill her. we just need her help with something"

"he-help?" Kagome stammered as the wall of metal receded back into the train car

"yes, you see one of our dear, dear friends has been injured, and we need your help"

"why didn't you just say that in the first place? you didn't need to trick me"

"you see, little Ed here just doesn't like us, he's such a bully"

"LITTLE?! WHO ARE YOU CALLING LITTLE?!"

"Kagome, please don't go with them" Al said, "they're bad, they've killed innocent people, GOOD innocent people!"

"that's a lie and you know it, Alphonse" Lust gave a sweet smile.

"Kagome, just...just come back here, please."

"Ed..." Kagome gasped, he sounded so hurt...

"I'll do whatever you want, just don't go with them!"

"you...do you promise?"

"I swear on my life!" he said instantly

"...ugh, you better be keep your word" she sighed, and returned to her previous spot on his lap. she was shocked when he pulled her close, and held her there. it was like he was afraid of losing her...like he actually CARED about her. 'well, he IS pretty warm' Kagome smiled, snuggling into him. he just sat there, holding her close, his face buried in her hair.

"don't you ever think about leaving like that again..." he said, her first thought was to push him away and yell at him but before she could even move her hands up to his chest, she felt him kiss her shoulder.

"you...you know what that means...right?" she whispered into his ear

"...yeah, I know." he whispered back, and kissed her shoulder again

"oh, Ed!" Kagome's eyes began to tear up, and leaned back slightly, he seemed worried for a moment. she smiled, and put her arms around his neck, and pressed her lips against his. she had always loved the blonde alchemist, but back when they were all little, he seemed to ignore all of her attempts at getting his attention. now she had it, and she was not going to give it up. Kagome smiled softly, and curled into a ball in Ed's arms.

"aww, how sentimental" Lust cooed sarcastically, "lovey-dovey time is over, and we're taking the miko with us, whether or not you like it, fullmetal"

"just hand her over, shorty"

"I'M-...I'm. not. short." he almost screamed, but felt her fist at his shirt

"wow! no explosion this time? I'm impressed!" Envy laughed, "I guess even short-stacks like you can control yourself"

just as Ed opened his mouth to yell at Envy he felt Kagome fist at his shirt again. he just sighed, and held her a bit closer.

"come, Envy. I can see we won't get anywhere right now"

"what?! we're going leave without her?!"

"ugh...what's with all the noise?" Kagome groaned

"it's nothing, go back to sleep."

"I said, you're coming with us!" Envy growled, reaching out to pull her from Fullmetal's lap

"no..." Kagome whimpered, and put up a barrier, shocking Envy pretty badly

"OW! that really hurt!" Envy yanked his hand back, it looked singed, and it wasn't repairing itself right away, "what the hell is going on?"

"what are you whining about, Envy?"

"it's not healing!"

"what?" Lust was shocked and looked at the singed hand.

"it's not healing! you got lucky today, pipsqueak!" Envy yelled he went to punch Edward with his good hand but was met with the same barrier, "GAAH! THAT REALLY FUCKING BURNS!" he pulled his fist away and looked at it, it looked worse than his other hand.

"don't touch..himmm..." she sighed, snuggling further into Ed's chest.

"it was nice to meet you, Kagome" Lust said honestly and patted Kagome's head without any damage. 'interesting, both times when Envy was aggressive he got hurt. I tried being nice and wasn't. that could prove to be a problem later on'

"leave, now." demanded Ed

"of course. come along, Envy."

"yeah, sure..." his hands stung badly, "how come you didn't get hurt?" Envy asked after he and Lust were in another train car

"I wanted to see if the barrier was selective. you tried to take Kagome from Edward, obviously she was not going to let you and so you got hurt. then you went to strike Edward and you get burned worse than before"

"so? why didn't you get hurt?"

"I honestly did enjoy meeting her, so I decided to see if being nice still got me hurt, it was as if there was no barrier to begin with, but I could see a slight shimmer around her and fullmetal. I hope that doesn't pose a problem later on"

-xxXX^*^XXxx-

"I wonder why Lust was so nice to Kagome and big brother"

"I think she was testing if the barrier would hurt her even if she tried being nice. she should have gotten hurt anyway." Ed glared out the window, ignoring the two smirks

"so..., Ed." Winry smirked

"oh no! no, don't you start that again! you're the reason I was forced to admit to my stupid feelings." he glared at her for a moment, then looked back out the window

"I'm happy for you, brother!" Al said, "but I don't think Colonel Mustang will be so happy about it"

"happy about what?"

"MUSTANG?!"


	3. Chapter 3

"my god...what is it NOW?" Kagome groaned, she was exhausted. 'damn my travels in the feudal era turning me into a light sleeper...'

"Al, what do you mean, you don't-...-...FULLMETAL! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING WITH MY DAUGHTER!?"

"shut up!" Kagome whined loudly, she didn't even bother to turn around in Ed's arms to look at her father.

"ANSWER ME, FULLMETAL!" Roy barked

"GODS...do you EVER shut up?" Kagome forced herself to roll over, "I was trying to sleep."

"do you HAVE to let Fullmetal-"

"he protected me, I'm tired, and he's warm. of course I'm going to fall asleep right here." she nuzzled against Ed for a moment, "you should be THANKING, Ed. not SCREAMING at him"

"oh? and why's that?!"

"because I haven't been able to sleep for more than 4 hours at a time. I can't remember the last time I had a full night's sleep."

"Kagom-" Al was shocked

"I just...I guess I just can't sleep without something warm holding me close."

"...-" Roy's left eye twitched for a split second

"gods...back in the fuedal era, I'd always sleep in Inuyasha's lap, it was just safer that way, especially during winter. being a half demon he could withstand the cold much more easily than I could ever dream of."

"what does that have to do with Fullmetal."

"well...he's warm like Inuyasha was...now PLEASE. I NEED my sleep!"

"Kago-"

"I. NEED. SLEEP."

"grahhh...fine. but if I hear anything, I'm burning Fullmetal to ashes."

"DAD! I'M TIRED! PLEASE, JUST LET ME SLEEP!"

"fine, fine." Roy held up his hands in a mock surrender, and left for another train car.

"gods..." Kagome sighed, relaxing into Ed's hold, it felt so good to be held like that again. to feel so safe.

"Kagome...?" Al sounded worried

"not...REALLY. I sleep for a straight 4 hours if I'm lucky. it's usually an hour and a half or two hours at a time. also, it's not because I miss how warm Inuyasha felt. I've been having horrible nightmares since the well closed me off. right now is the safest I've felt in so many months. now PLEASE, I promise to tell you more later, but I REALLY AM exhuasted."

"that's ok, I think we're going to take a nap too" Winry smiled.

'her lips felt so soft, and they tasted...- really good' Ed thought, feeling this strange need to feel her lips against his again. but he had to wait, if Winry saw, she'd never let it go.

"thank you..." Kagome smiled sleepily, and snuggled into Ed. 'oh, Ed...gods, I love you so much...'

after an hour of sitting there in silence, Winry was asleep, and Al was in his thoughts. it something he tended to do during the night, since he couldn't sleep in his current body. Ed just barely shook Kagome's shoulder.

"huh?" Kagome whispered, cracking an eye open to glare tiredly at the alchemist, "what is it, Ed?"

"I can't wait any longer." he whispered, and crashed his lips against hers

"you ca-!?" she gasped, then let out a happy sigh.

tsp..."sorry for-"

"don't be. hmm...I love you too, Ed..." Kagome whispered as she snuggled into Ed's chest once more.

'I'm happy for you, brother.' Al thought to himself, he kept his eyes closed so his brother could have that moment to himself and Kagome.

"Kagome..." Ed sighed, tucking a piece of hair behind her ear, he smiled. Kagome's words leaving him, happy, euphoric, almost. the soft tingling left on his lips making him feel somewhere between giddy and content. Edward Elric finally felt complete.

after another hour had passed, Ed was fully asleep with Kagome held close.

Al gently nudged Winry. "wha?" she whispered tiredly.

"look." he whispered, pointing to Ed and Kagome, "Kagome will want a picture of that" Winry smirked, she managed to rummage through her bag for her camera without waking either of the sleeping lovebirds. she had to be careful with the flash. she probably only had one to two chances at getting the picture without waking them.

"why don't you get one for brother, just in case he wants one."

"I can try." Winry focused her camera, then took two consecutive pictures. she sat there, frozen in place, waiting for Ed or Kagome to rouse. neither did. she removed the pictures from the camera, and looked at them, "perfect"

"I'll keep them in my chest cavity for safe keeping"

"good idea, Al." Winry smiled, handing them to the suit of armor.

Al set them inside his metal gut, then closed the chest plate, and patted it gently, "nice and secure"

"they look so cute together, don't they?"

"yeah, brother deserves someone to make him happy, especially with everything that happens on our quest to get our bodies back."

"yeah, Ed doesn't know how lucky he is" Winry whispered softly, trying her best to avoid waking up the miko curled up in Ed's lap.

"what do you mean?"

"just look at him, Al. there's no way he could go looking for a girlfriend, and even if he did, I really doubt he'll get anyone as loyal as Kagome. she's always loved Ed. I remember when she had to move away, she was so upset, she was terrified that Ed would find some other girl to fall in love with before she could come back to us. you don't know how happy I am to see Kagome and Ed together."

"I think I can imagine. Ed would talk about her in his sleep. he really missed her. you should get back to sleep, Winry, we're still a few hours away from central."

"yeah, wake me up when we get to central."

"of course" Al nodded, and watched the bkonde mechanic fall asleep, using a jacket she had brought with her as a pillow

"mmmm, Ed..." Kagome mumbled, and nuzzled against the alchemist.

it was a few hours later that Al saw central station come into view. he let the others sleep a little longer, only waking them once they were officially at central station. "Winry...time to wake up."

"huh?"

"we're at central, Winry."

"oh, ok. thanks for waking me up." Winry yawned, then stretched

"no pro-"

"FULLMETAL! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING?!"

"AAHH!" Kagome squeaked in terror, clinging to Ed for dear life.

"grah...what is it, Colonel? Kagome and I were both asleep!" Ed then looked at the terrified miko grabbing fist-fulls of his jacket, "it's alright, Kagome. it's just the colonel." he held her close, and did his best to calm her down. "it's ok, it's ok. I've got ya, you're safe in my arms, I promise you." Ed whispered in a soft, loving voice. his metal palm made gentle circles on her back. it took a few long minutes for her to finally calm down. she hid from the world in Ed's chest.

'he's so warm...and he smells...so good'


	4. Chapter 4

-xxXX*^a week later^*XXxx-

"goodnight, Al."

"good night, Kagome. good night, brother"

"night Al." Ed smirked ever so slightly, he was glad Al wanted the bottom bunk, it meant he could nuzzle and whisper sweet nothings to Kagome without a guilty conscience of seeing his brother watch.

"so, what are the plans for tomorrow?" Kagome asked, she was currently curled into his side. it felt so good to be pressed against him the way she was.

"was there something in particular you wanted to do tomorrow?" Ed asked

"you could show me around, I haven't been seen Amestris in years."

"hey, Kagome?" Al's slightly echoed voice asked

"yeah? what is it, Al?"

"why did you have to come to Amestris, anyway?"

"oh, it's...kind of a long story"

"I'd like to hear it"

"shouldn't you be getting to sleep? and why are you still wearing that armor? it's got to be really uncomfortable"

"I-uh...l-long story?"

"uh...huh. I'll tell you what, you tell me YOUR long story, and I'll tell you mine, we got a deal?"

"brother?"

"you wanna tell 'er? or should I?" Ed replied

"we can take can take turns telling the story, if you want. I just was asking where to start"

"I know where we can start." Ed pulled Kagome a fraction closer and recounted the tragic past.

"oh my god...you two have been through so much! my travels feel like a picnic compared to what you two have endured." Kagome gasped, her heart twisted and cracked at the details of their story.

"you promised to tell us your story if we told you ours, Kagome"

"yeah...I did, didn't I?" she giggled ever-so-softly. she took a deep breath, then let it out in a heavy sigh, "it all started when I was 16. what a horrible day that was.." she giggled softly, recounting her travels in the feudal era, her battles with Naraku, and assorted youkai. "the first thing I remember seeing after the wish was made on the jewel, was Inuyasha. he seemed so worried, but I should have known it wasn't for my sake. with the jewel gone, Kikyo had no reason left to stay. it was so hard on him. I don't know if he ever realized how I felt about him. a part of me wanted to ask him if he wanted me to stay with him. he had often said he only needed me to sense the jewel shards. but on rare nights he would be so affectionate. he'd bury his nose into the crook of my neck. he'd hold me so close, much more than usual. it felt like he was afraid I'd leave him all alone." a few tears rolled down Kagome's cheeks. but her voice remained level, "I would let him sniff my hair for as long as he wanted."

"sniff your hair?" Ed asked confused

"he's a half dog demon, remember, Ed?"

"oh, right.."

"I never knew when he'd be affectionate like that again, so I'd enjoy it while it lasted. it's sad, really. it was like he was afraid I'd leave him when he'd be so sweet and cuddly. yet I knew that he WOULD choose Kikyo over me if he was given the choice."

"but she was already dead, why would he choose her over you?" Al asked.

"she was his first love. that's a bond I could never have hoped to compete with."

"must have been hard on you" Ed said, pulling Kagome closer

"it was. but Shippo was very helpful in cheering me up. he was such a good little kit" a few more tears fell, "he-...he'd always look like a five-year-old on christmas morning when I'd give him a sucker or a new toy. it was so heartwarming, he'd take it, yell out, "yay!" or "thanks, mama!" he'd hug me, then run off to enjoy it, a lot of times he'd even share it with Kirara. heh, he was a good boy..." Kagome had pause her story to reign in the coming sobs.

"you ok?" Ed was worried, he didn't like to see her so upset. especially when he knew there was nothing he could do to ease the pain. he pulled her closer and gently stroked her back, "you're with us now. you'll never be alone again, Kagome."

"you promise?"

"yeah, I promise" he smiled

"I promise too, Kagome!" Al agreed happily

"you're stuck with us forever." Ed simply laughed

"heh, yeah." Kagome smiled, then crawled forward slightly, and pressed her lips against Ed's for a heated moment, tsp..."then you two are stuck with me, as well."

"unless Roy decides to split us up for some crazy reason that only he can think is sane"

"I'll just use the sleep card again. he knows how I get when I'm too sleep deprived. he'd want to avoid facing that whenever he can."

"what happens?" Al asked

"I get horrible mood swings, my miko powers go completely crazy, lashing out at everything nearby. strangely enough, when it happened about two months ago, the only one who could get to me was my chubby cat, Buyo. he rubbed up against my ankle and meowed. hmm, he wanted me to nap with him. he's a good fat cat"

"you won't have to worry about that ever again, Kagome" Ed smiled, pulling her close for a moment so he could return the heated moment for a quick second

afterwards, Kagome let out a loud yawn, "I'm really tired, you guys. we can talk more tomorrow."

"ok, goodnight, Kagome." Al smiled

"night, Al" Kagome smiled, "night, Ed..." she whispered in a low sultry tone, her expression slightly lustful. slowly a naughty smirk pulled at her lips.

Ed's heart was pounding in his chest. 'there is NO WAY this is real! I've gotta be dreaming! this-I don't think I want to wake up any time soon...' he smirked ever-so-softly when she crawled forwards a just a fraction of an inch more and crashed her lips against his. 'damn I love the dream world!' Ed thought to himself, his arms securely fastening her to that spot while their tongues silently battled for dominance over the other. Ed won for a short while, taking his time to enjoy each and every inch of the cavern before her tongue shoved his out, so she could do the same to him. damn it felt good!

tskp..."hmm, much better" she smirked softly, then curled into a ball and snuggled into his side, perfectly content in his arms.


	5. Chapter 5

-xxXX*^that next morning^*XXxx-

"it's ok, really! brother was just keeping her warm! brother was just helping her sleep! I promise!"

'that's...Al's voice. but, who's...who's he talking to? nnnnaaughh...and what's making me feel so content and warm?' Kagome carefully opened one eye, and found Edward Elric holding her close, she smiled softly, and snuggled into him again, she was going to enjoy the snuggle while she could. 'Inuyasha never really let me snuggle like THIS before...'

"Alphonse..." wait a second...she recognized that voice! "I understand you want Kagome to be happy, but do you REALLY think fullmetal can always do that? Kagome is too trusting and forgiving for her own good. I just don't want to see her get hurt again."

'what's the colonel doing in here? god...it's so early...'

"I don't know if he'll ALWAYS say the right thing, but I know brother will fix whatever mess he gets himself into, he's really smart"

"but he's not WOMAN-smart"

"woman...smart?" Alphonse was utterly confused.

"he doesn't know the first thing about handling women"

"are you saying I need to be, "handled"?" Kagome spoke up.

"no, but he needs to know what not to say so-"

"if he does something stupid, I'll talk to him about it."

"nnng...hey, who are you talking to, Kagome? get back to sleep. Al will wake us up when it's time to head out. he always does."

"brother, the colonel is here."

"ugh, why?" Ed groaned.

"I'm going to have Kagome stay in Hawkeye's room, black Hayate is small but she tells me he's very warm when he wants to snuggle."

"what?! no, you can't!" Kagome yelped

"Kagome, it's for the best."

"why?" she glared, "Ed and Al can keep me safe! they've proved that on the train when those two...whatever they were, Lust and Envy-"

"they're called homonculi." sighed Roy, "to you they're...like evil demons, like that Naraku you told me about"

"he was a HALF-demon."

"regardless! you're staying with Hawkeye and Black Hayate at night, effective immediately" Mustang hadn't sounded quite that serious in a long while.

"bu-"

"no! no buts, Kagome! you are my daughter! I'm not going to let fullmetal's reckless behavior get you seriously hurt!"

"I can keep her safe too!" Al said. "when brother gets like that I'm always the one to remind him of the people we promised to protect!"

"yeah!" Ed held out an open palm towards his brother, "he does it everytime!"

"my mind is made up. she will be sleeping in Hawkeye's quarters"

"have you asked Riza?"

"yes, he has. I'd be more than happy to share my quarters with her. Hayate is very excited to have a new friend as well"

"I'll miss you..." Kagome whispered into Ed's ear

"yeah." Ed replied, pulling her closer and kissed her cheek for a quick, yet very loving, second.

"what was that, Fullmetal?"

"I was thanking him for keeping me warm like Inuyasha would back in the feudal era..."

"come on, Kagome, Hayate is probably trying to scratch his way through the door, he's really excited to meet you."

"y-yeah, ok.." she leaned in and kissed Ed on the cheek for a quick second before climbing down. Kagome looked around the room, but couldn't see her yellow backpack anywhere. "hey, Al. where'd you put my bag?"

"I kept it safe in here" he said, opening his chest plate and pulled out her bag, after slipping one of the two pictures Winry took while they were on the train into the bag.

"thanks, Al" she smiled half-heartedly.

"you'll love Hayate, Kagome" Roy told her while putting an arm around her shoulder and walking her down the hall towards Hawkeye's room, and the awaiting dog.

"damn that mustang..." Ed clenched his jaw

"brother, I have something you might like to have. I can't believe I forgot to give this to you earlier."

"yeah? what is it?"

"Winry took a picture of you and Kagome back when we were on the train on our way back here. I told her to get a second one just in case you wanted one" he held out the small square picture to his brother.

"thanks, Al." Ed smiled softly, staring at it for what felt like hours to him.

"I don't think the colonel will make Kagome stay with Riza and Hayate for long."

"yeah?"

"I've seen how you two are. she looks so different when she sleeps next to you than by herself. if I'm thinking this through right, the colonel will have to let her sleep with us again by...the end of the month at the latest."

"you really think so, Al?"

"yeah. from what I've seen, when she wasn't next to you Kagome only stayed asleep for two hours at the very most. not to mention during her sleep she makes a lot of terrified squeaks and keeps saying "stay away", "get off me" the one I've heard the most was "save me, Ed" she really trusts you, brother. the first night she was here, she only mentioned Inuyasha once. after that she only wanted you to save her"

"looks like I'm gonna be losing some sleep too."

"I knew you had a crush on her, brother. you always have"

"yeah..."

"NO!" they heard Kagome yelling

"brother?"

"Kagome..." Ed whispered, jumped out of the bed and ran off to find Kagome

"wh-what WAS that, brother?" Al asked chasing after his brother

"NO!" that was Kagome's voice, again

"Kagome! it's ok!" that was the colonel's voice

"wh-what's going on?" Al was stunned

"we don't know. she was petting Hayate one second, then she grabbed her head and then...this"

"get outta my way!" Ed yelled, pushing through, but Roy caught his arm before he could reach her

"you're not getting near her!"

"I SAID, GET OUT OF MY WAY!" Ed snapped, yanking his metal arm from Roy's grip. "Kagome...hey, Kagome. it's me, it's Ed." he whispered, kneeling beside the bed she was on. the next thing the blonde alchemist knew was he felt a warm weight on his chest.

"OH, ED!" she sobbed quietly into his chest.

"shh, shh, shh..it's ok, I've got ya." he managed to sit upright, and scoot slightly over to the side then turn to lean against Riza's desk while he held the whimpering miko in his lap close. "don't worry. I'm here." he whispered, making small circles on her back with his hand, "I'm never gonna let anything happen to you, I swear on my life. if I can fight, I'm going to protect you"

"bu-"

"no. buts. I WILL protect you, as long as there's still fight left in me."

"oh, Ed..." Kagome sighed softly, snuggling into his chest

"what the hell happened, Colonel?!" Ed whispered through gritted teeth.

"as far as I know she had a flashback from when she knew that damn mutt, Inuyasha!"

Riza sighed softly. "you can be such an idiot sometimes, Colonel."

"what? she's my daugh-"

"she's also heartbroken over him. I should have known seeing a dog would bring back memories of the dog demon she knew, and very much loved, from what I understand. I think she should stay with the Elrics for now"

"you can't be-"

"the second she touched his ears she began sobbing. obviously that, Inuyasha, guy had dog ears like Hayate." she squatted next to Kagome, and put a hand on her back comfortingly, "I'm terribly sorry for bringing back those memories, Kagome. I should have known better."

"brother?"

Ed just sighed, before pulling Kagome a bit closer, "I'm not leaving you, Kagome."

"thank you..." she whispered near silently, "I...I love you, Ed..."


	6. Chapter 6

'wh-what?!' Ed had to fight with ever ounce of strength he had to not let the shock show, he pulled her slightly closer and whispered, "what?"

"I said, I-..I, love you, Ed." then she gently kissed his shoulder, reminding him of when he had done that on the train. 'she loves me! KAGOME, LOVES ME!' he had to bite down on his tongue and remember how upset she looked when she told him and Al about the feudal era to keep the goofy smirk off his face.

only Al noticed it before his brother managed to hide it under a mask of concern over what happened when he had bolted from their room. 'I'm happy for you, brother.'

"god damnit..." Roy seemed to growl. "ok, Fullmetal. I'm giving you a chance to prove I can trust you with my daughter's safety. you have one month."

"what, exactly is he going to be-" Al began to ask

"I should have known you'd ask that, Alphonse." Roy chuckled, then squatted down in front of the elder Elric. "I know my daughter, Fullmetal. so I'll know if she isn't getting a FULL night's sleep. I can tell if you recently upset her and whether or not you've made it up to her too. I can tell if she's been hurt, if she used some of her spirit energy to heal any wounds. also, if I were you, I would never bring up dog demons. they're a sore spot for her. I'll have some of my men pop into your room at random to keep tabs on how everything is. I'll be stopping by at random times as well. oh, and one last thing. if you hurt her, I will burn you to a crisp." he snapped his fingers, and a flame popped into life, he then blew out like it was smoke from a recently fired gun. "heh, good luck, Fullmetal." with that said, Roy left

"you owe me, Kagome" Riza sighed and shook her head a minute later

"thank you" she smiled, Kagome gave Ed a quick kiss on the cheek then stood up and hugged Riza

"wha-"

"do you boys honestly expect me to have not caught on to Kagome and Ed? the colonel may be dense but I do notice things like that."

"huh? you...?" Ed was completely lost.

"I can't believe I managed to get myself that worked up that fast!" Kagome giggled softly after returning to Ed's lap, "for a second there I thought it wasn't going to work!"

"what?"

"she knows that you've already taken Inuyasha's place in my heart, not entirely of course, he WAS the first man I ever loved. but he and I were never meant to be together. Inuyasha never TRULY loved me."

"but how did you-"

"oh, please!" Riza chuckled for a second, "I saw that protective hold you had on her. I also saw you kissing her cheek." she smirked, "the Ed I know would never do that. obviously she means just as much, if not more than Al to you."

"in different ways, yeah. Al's my brother, no one could replace him"

"oh my god...that-...that's not possible..." Kagome gasped, and looked out the window, "but-...it's closed! how can...-oh my god...is...is it really...-him?" she stood there for a second, then whispered, "sit boy."

-xxXX*^outside^*XXxx-

"GYAHH! fuckin'...she really has to stop doin' that to me!" Inuyasha growled, peeling his face from the concrete. 'good thing I ain't human, that woulda killed me a long time ago...'

"INUYASHA! WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!" Kagome yelled. she was dragging some blonde kid behind her.

"WHY THE HELL DID YOU SIT ME?!"

"I had to know if it was really you.."

"wh-of course it's me! who else could I be?!"

"you could be Envy" the blonde replied, shrugging

"brother! what happened?"

"how should I know? Kagome dragged me out here without telling me! ask her!"

"Inuyasha...WHY are you here? h-HOW are you here?"

"how else? I went through the well! why are you so far away from the shrine?"

"mom was worried about me, so she wanted me to live with my father here in Amestris."

"your father?! you said he died!"

"he did...more or less."

"the hell does that mean?"

"he left us after Sota was born, ok?"

"so he DID leave behind a family to fight in the ishvallen war..." muttered Al

"Kagome, come on, Keade said the well could only stay open for a month, I spent half of that tryin' to find you. now let's go, it'll take us a day to get back."

"back?"

"yeah. to the feudal era."

"...no, I-" she took a few steps back. she needed to feel Ed's comforting grip on her waist again.

"she's staying here" Ed glared, "I don't care what you are, you can't have her"

"oh yeah? and what's a shorty like you gonna do about it?"

"I'M NOT SHORT!" Ed snapped, he pulled Kagome closer and took a deep inhale of her hair, then let out a soft sigh, "you're not exactly mr. perfect, you know."

"you JUST noticed? keh!"

"he's not talking about you being a half demon, Inuyasha"

"then what the hell ARE you talking about, huh?"

"you could have had Kagome ALL to yourself, but you pushed her away when you ran off to see your dead miko"

"DON'T YOU DARE TALK ABOUT KIKYO LIKE THAT!" Inuyasha snarled

"don't call me short!" countered Ed

"Kagome, you better shut him up or I'm gonna make him shut up, myself"

"no, he's right, Inuyasha! I LOVED you! but you never loved me back, you'd leave camp to go see Kikyo every night! hell, Sesshomaru was nicer to me than you were!"

"oh yeah, he was REAL nice to you when he tried to kill you!"

"he stopped doing that after he found me CRYING because of you!"

"when?"

"you remember when I told you to meet me at the well? because I had something really really important to ask you?"

"...-yeah?"

"you left me waiting by the well for hours! HOURS! I saw Kikyo's soul collectors, and realized you wouldn't be coming, you know what I was going to ask you?"

"to let you go your-"

"no! I was going to ask you if you would court me! I wanted to be your mate! but you were too busy with Kikyo! Sesshomaru found me crying next to the well, and he actually comforted me! he was really nice! and you know what else? he let me cry on him! YEAH! he did! if my last trip to my time hadn't closed me off, I'd be your brother's mate-to-be! I feel so bad for him...AND IT'S ALL YOUR FAULT! YOU MADE ME TAKE AWAY ANY CHANCE AT A FUTURE BACK THERE!"

"why can't you just go back? the well will be open for another 14 days!"

"...-a-...as much as I would love to see lord Sesshomaru again. I can't. I just...-" she looked at Ed, and hid from the hanyou in his chest.

'that Sesshomaru guy is a LORD?! and she's giving up a future with him for me?' "Kagome..? you-" Ed couldn't find the right words to say

"yes, Inuyasha's half-brother is a lord of the western lands in the feudal era. I'll have to send a note to him. it'll be so hard to write, but I can do it. he has Rin, and Kagura! he doesn't need me-"

"keh, did you really think I came alone?"

"what? you're the only one who-...S-S-Sessh...-oh my god...it's..."

"it's been far too long, my little miko. I have missed you so very much."

"Ed-"

"it's ok, just promise to come back, alright?"

"I promise" she whispered, then hugged him tightly for a moment, before running to the demon lord, "how did you-"

"I have no idea, but unlike my fool of a brother, I brought a gift"


	7. Chapter 7

"you didn't have to."

"but I think you will be quite please with my selection" he smirked, lifting his fur slightly, "come out."

"mama?"

"Sh-...Shi-p-po?" Kagome fell to her knees

"MAMA!" the small kit sobbed, running to her

"oh, SHIPPO!" Kagome sobbed, hugging the fox tightly

"I missed you so much, mama!"

"Sesshomaru...you-"

"I had talked with Keade, she said it might allow Shippo and myself to pass through if we gave her something of great value to put in the potion she was making."

"oh, thank you so much!"

"I heard you said you are not returning" he looked immensely pained by that simple phrase

"...I would love to, but.." she looked towards Ed and Al, "you see...a childhood friend of mine...the one in the red jacket...it's..."

"his name?"

"it's Edward Elric" Ed told him, bowing slightly, then went over to where Kagome sat

"you WILL treat her right or I will make you beg for mercy" Sesshomaru glared, "do you understand me? I can live for many many centuries. I will be back to visit when I have become a part of this time to make sure she is well taken care of."

"what is it with those in your life threatening me to take good care of you, Kagome?" Ed laughed for a moment

"Ed, Lord Sesshomaru is stronger than my dad ten times over. he doesn't need alchemy to back it up. his claws are poisonous when he wants them to be"

"I am faster, stronger, and harder to defeat then any human I have ever met in my 700 years"

"but you were still tamed by two female humans" Kagome giggled

"if only the same could be said for the half-breed" he glared at Inuyasha

"KAGOME! WHAT'S GOING O-you...what in the hell are you doing here you filthy mutt?! I should have you killed for the trauma you caused my daughter!" Roy yelled, furius with Inuyasha

"Inuyasha, this is my father, Roy. he's also known as the flame alchemist" to demonstrate that Roy snapped his fingers and tossed a small fireball at the concrete 5 yards away from everyone

"have you forgotten my kimono protects me from fire?"

"I'd love to test the limits of that claim." he smirked darkly, challenging the hanyou

"Roy! calm down! he's being civil. also, this is his older half-brother, Lord Sesshomaru. ruler of the western lands back in the feudal era. he was kind enough to bring me the best gift any man has ever given me"

"what?" Roy was neraly foaming at the mouth

"he brought me my son!"

"SON?!"

"god...adoptive! you should know I can't give birth to a full blooded fox demon! ANYWAY! this is Shippo! I told you about him"

"ah, so THIS is little Shippo." Roy smiled ever-so-softly at the fox

"are you my mama's papa?"

"yes I am"

"so...you're my grandpa?"

"I guess so" Roy laughed

"YAY! I HAVE A GRANDPA!" he leapt onto Roy's shoulder, "...-you smell like ashes..."

"he-...it's kind of like your fox fire. dad, show him"

"sure" he snapped his finger and tossed a small fireball at the same spot of concrete, "show me this fox fire she mentioned"

"can I mama?"

"yes, but only if you aim at the dark spot there" she smiled pointing at the spot Roy singed twice

"OKAY! FOX FIRE!" he held out his tiny furry palm and a small blue flame was shot at the singed concrete

"impressive!" Roy beamed, "what else can you do?"

"can I show him everything, mama?"

"be careful, Shippo, Ed could you make a concrete wall if his tricks get out of hand to stop them?" she winked at Ed, telling him if he did that, he'd win a "brownie point" or two with Roy

"yeah"

"we can go to the training ring"

"I'll help too!" Al said, chasing after the three

"so...about why I can't return with you..."

"you've fallen for that, Ed, one haven't you?"

"yes, I have."

"does he feel the same?"

"yes, he does. truth be told, he's taken most of the space Inuyasha used to have of my heart."

"oi!" said hanyou barked

"you did that by yourself! you COULD have had me! but you chose Kikyo."

"keh!"

"I will miss you dearly, Kagome"

"I know, and I'll miss you too, Sesshomaru. for some crazy reason, I'll even miss you too, Inuyasha"

"the west will never be the same without you."

"you still have Rin and Kagura"

"Kagura has mentioned to me she wouldn't mind being a back-up plan. hn, she says she'll find a way into my heart. she'll have to get Rin's loyalty and affection to even have a chance of gaining mine."

"that sounds like a great plan, if Kagura can prove to Rin that she's not a threat, but actually a frie-" Kagome was cut off by a yell

"BROTHER!"

"oh my god, Ed!" Kagome yelped, running full speed towards the voice. when she got there, she was shocked, "WH-WHAT THE HELL HAPPENED?! WHY IS ED'S HAND BURNED?!"

"it wasn't me, Mama, I promise!" Shippo held his tiny hands up in surrender. he took a few steps backwards.

"...Shippo..." Kagome sighed, she knelt down, and watched the kit dash into her lap, "I know you wouldn't hurt Ed." Kagome's expression went from compassion to seething anger in moments, "Dad, what happened?"

"Brother! wake up! come on!" Al whined, sitting next to the blonde alchemist.

"Al, can you please tell me what happened? why is Ed burned like this?"

"w-well, the Colonel fou-"

"Kagome, how cou-"

"I'M NOT TALKING TO YOU." she glared visciously. then sighed, and sat behind Ed so she could put his head on her lap, "oh, Ed..." she whispered. Kagome looked up towards Al, "please, tell me what happened"

"well, I don't know how, but Colonel Mustang found out about that um...kiss that you shared with brother the other night. the next thing I saw was a flame headed straight for brother. I tried to pull him out of the way, but he still got burned. I'm sorry, Kagome, I tried my be-"

"oh, Al..." Kagome smiled softly, "you have no reason to be sorry, knowing how...the Colonel." Kagome spat out, "is, he was aiming for a fatal blow to the heart. thank you, Al. really, thanks to you, Ed is alive, he's not exactly conscious, but he's definitely alive, he probably passed out from the pain"

"I just feel so bad that Brother might have to get automail on that arm too..."

"no, he won't need that" Kagome smiled gently, she took a deep breath, then balled up her left hand until it glowed a light pink color, she pressed her hand to the top of his shoulder, he winced for a quick second then greatly relaxed as her hand traveled down the arm and over his hand. she did that twice, then chanted something before letting out a long sigh. she glared at Roy, "I can't believe you actually did that to Ed. I can't help who I fall in love with! HE should be a perfect example of that." Kagome snapped, pointing at Inuyasha

"OI!" Inuyasha barked

"Kagome, I had told-"

"you KNOW how I feel about those who hurt the people closest to me. you have lost nearly all of my respect for you, I hope you're happy, Mustang."

"is Brother going to be alright, Kagome?"

"he'll be fine, but it'll take a little while for his arm to heal completely."

"m-mama?"

"hmm? yeah? what is it, Shippo?"

"does...this mean he's NOT my grandpa?"

"you still have a great grand-dad, you remember Gramps, right?"

"you mean the one with no spirit energy that lives in the shrine?"

"yeah. I'll have to visit the shrine with you some day so you can meet him and my mom and Souta."

"that sounds like a lot of fun!" Shippo smiled.


	8. Chapter 8

"Shippo, I don't want you to be alone with Mustang ever again. I know he would never hurt you, but he needs to earn my respect back before I can trust him with keeping you safe."

"I know, mama." Shippo, nodded. he turned towards Ed, and pointed to him, saying, "I really like him! he's really cool! he made me some targets, and told me if I could hit them all with my fox fire, he'd take me to a candy store and let me pick one thing!"

"did you hit them all?"

"YEAH! all eight of them! it was fun too!"

"aww, that's my good boy, Shippo..." Kagome fought to hold back tears of joy at how well Ed got along with Shippo.

"what's wrong, mama?"

"happy tears, sweetie, happy tears."

"oh, ok." he smiled. Shippo really liked it when Kagome had happy tears.

"let's get him inside, Ed's going to need to rest for a while."

"I will help" Sesshomaru said, easily picking up Ed. he was so gentle with him too. it really warmed Kagome's heart.

"thank you, Sesshomaru" Kagome smiled, "Al, can you show us where the room is? I forgot the way there"

"yeah, of course." Al said, jogging over to the four.

-xxXX*^3 days later^*XXxx-

it was late at night when Edward Elric finally woke up. he looked around the room, 'this doesn't look like the training ring...this looks...like Al and my room...' the next thing Ed noticed was a familiar warmth curled against him. he smiled, 'Kagome...' he thought she was sleep until she sat up, and stared at him

"hi..." she smiled softly, "I starting to get worried about you."

"is brother awake?"

"yeah, he just woke up a second ago"

"BROTHER!" Al wailed, standing up, "I was so scared you wouldn't wake up!"

"I'm glad you're ok! I like you!" Shippo smiled brightly, he had been curled up between Kagome and Ed

"...Shippo, right?" Ed asked groggily

"YEP!"

"oh, Ed..." Kagome cried, then cupped his face in her delicate palms, and crashed her lips against his, "I was so worried!"

"why am I in our room? last I remember is-...aaurgh..." Ed pushed some of the blonde hair out of his face, "your father tried to kill me, didn't he?"

"he did. but Al got you out of the way enough for it to not be fatal." Kagome giggled weakly, a few tears still rolling down her cheeks

"but...my arm...it-"

"I healed it. in the feudal era I was called a miko. a priestess. I can heal people without alchemy. it seems kind of weird if I think too much about it. back in the feudal era, alchemy was called magic. heh, you would have been called a god if they saw you using your alchemy." she giggled softly, then let out a heavy sigh, and kissed him gently, "you don't know how grateful I am that you're awake."

"and leave you alone with that pyromaniac? no way. you're stuck with me!" he chuckled, smirking smugly

"and you're stuck with Shippo and I"

"mama?"

"hmm? yeah, what is it, sweetie?"

"you said when Ed wakes up, you'd ask him about that thing?"

"oh, right."

"what thing?" Ed was confused

"well, since we're obviously going to be married some day, Shippo wanted to know if you'd like to be his adoptive father, since I'm his adoptive mother."

"you-...heh! are you kidding? of course I will!"

"YAY!" Shippo yelled, he hopped over, and hugged Ed, "THANK YOU PAPA!"

"then that makes me your uncle!"

"YEAH! I have a new papa AND I have an uncle! THIS IS GREAT!"

"yeah...it is." Kagome sighed, snuggling back into Ed's side as she watched the kit run from Ed to Al to the floor, then just go in circles like a hyper little puppy. it all felt too good to be true, and it was. moments later, the door opened. instantly Shippo stopped running in circles and bee-lined for Ed and Kagome. he didn't really trust Roy after trying to kill his adoptive father.

"I see you've finally awoken, Fullmetal."

"yeah, and what of it?"

"just ignore him, Ed."

"I can't, I'm a state alchemist, and he's a colonel. he outranks me."

"I just came by to see how things are going"

"things were wonderful until you ruined it" Kagome bit out. still rather infuriated that her father tried to kill Ed JUST because of a kiss.

"I TOLD Fullmetal he had to prepared to burnt alive if he-"

"god...I kissed HIM, ok?! and you know what? it was wonderful! I love Ed! there! I said it! I love Edward Elric. if you were truly my father, you'd sit down, and talk to Ed about it"

"that Sesshomaru guy told me, I WILL treat Kagome right or he'll make me beg for mercy. heh, there's no way I would ever try to hurt Kagome."

"why did you try to kill my papa?" Shippo asked, staring at Roy like he was about to cry

"I hope you're happy, COLONEL, your own grandson is terrified of you!"

"Shipp-"

"you're not to speak with my son for a long LONG while." Kagome picked up the kit and placed him between herself and Ed. she looked at Shippo gently, and said, "Shippo, I don't want you anywhere near him until I know for sure I can trust him again, ok?"

"ok, I promise, mama!"

"that's my good boy, Shippo."

"Colonel, please. at least give us a reasonable explanation! do you really think that Brother is so wrong for Kagome? you haven't even given him a real chance to prove himself."

"not to mention I'm the only reason Kagome can get any sleep." Ed noted

"like my very own knight in shining armor"

"armor?" Ed laughed for a second, "did you really just say that?"

"...yeah, I didn't think that through very well, did I?" Kagome giggled, "I'm sorry, Al. I wasn't thinking when I said that"

"I don't mind at all, it actually makes me feel better about my armor body."

"yeah?"

"well, my thinking is if I was never put in this body, then Brother wouldn't have left for Central to train his alchemy and get stronger. if THAT never had happened, then Brother wouldn't have been as able to protect you from Lust and Envy. so, they way I see it, this body I'm in is like a gift in some ways."

"wow...thank you, Al. that helps."

"Kagome"

"Colonel, you might be my father, and you may outrank Ed, but you can't keep us apart."

"oh yeah?"

"I'm not challenging you. heh, you know know as well as I do that without Ed, I can't sleep. not to mention if it wasn't for Ed. Lust and Envy would have taken me under the story of their friend being hurt and that they need my help. Ed is also one of the only reasons I'm still in Amestris and not the feudal era as Sesshomaru's mate. Ed loves me, and I love him. Shippo loves Ed and Al too. you should be happy I fell in love with a HUMAN man, instead of a demon lord."

"but Kagome-"

"no buts...if you can't accept the fact that Ed and I love each other, than I can't accept you back into my life. it's as simple as that."

"Kagome...you'd choose me over your own blood family?"

"choosing you, or the man who tried to kill you because I kissed you? heh, that's not really that hard of a choice. wouldn't you have made the same choice if you were me?"

"of course I would" Ed smiled after a quick second of thought. "I can't imagine life without you or Shippo"

"I love you, papa!" Shippo hugged Ed's neck

"I love you too, Shippo." suddenly, Ed remembered something, "oh! hey, I owe you some candy, don't I?"

"yeah?" Shippo's expression lit up.


	9. Chapter 9

"I'm a man of my word. I told you I'd buy you one of you hit the targets."

"YAY!"

"you're so sweet, Ed. Shippo loves candy." Kagome giggled softly, snuggling into Ed's side.

"where's that Sesshomaru guy?"

"he left for the feudal era yesterday. he took Inuyasha with him."

"I didn't like that Inuyasha."

"I'm still here, you know." Roy glared at Ed. he heaved a sigh, and sat down in one of the chairs in the room. "Kagome..." he started, looking uneasy, "look, I-"

"I'm not listening to it right now. you tried to MURDER Ed, and all because I kissed him. I was upset at the time, and he was just being so sweet and comforting to me. but I don't regret it one bit."

"Kagome. your mother asked me to look after you, I'm responsible for you."

"do you honestly understand everything I told you about my travels in the feudal era?" Kagome looked at her father incredulously. "I ask, because I don't think you do! I've been responsible for so much. do you realize what it's like to handle a cranky foul-mouthed, and foul-tempered hanyou for 4 years? ha! AND an evil spider hanyou on top of that? I've faced DEMONS! REAL. DEMONS. with fangs, and claws, and horns! blood thirsty demons that tried to EAT me countless times!"

"but you still needed saving from Lust and Envy"

"because that Envy guy had turned himself into Inuyasha! you would have reacted the same way I did if Naraku turned himself into mom. I can handle Amestris. I can handle Ed."

"but Fullmetal-"

"is nothing like Inuyasha. sure he has a bad temper, but you know what? he immediately apologized to me when he accidentally upset me! Inuyasha NEVER apologized, not once!" Kagome let out a sigh before continuing, "my point is Ed may have flaws, everyone does, even demons have flaws. nobody is perfect. but as far as I care, Ed is far better than Inuyasha. heh, even without Inuyasha's adorable twitchy ears."

"there are dangers that even Inuyasha can't handle"

"like what?"

"like scar"

"scar?"

"he goes around killing state alchemists. he's tried to kill me a few times, too"

"what?"

"he's never hurt me too badly before. he's busted my automail arm and half of Al, but that's just machinery. I promise you, Kagome. he won't get any part of me that isn't metal."

"really?"

"I promised to protect you as long as I still got fight in me, didn't I? I can't let a guy like Scar hurt you."

Roy was shocked a little by that. then he smiled a little, 'reminds me of how I was with her mother...' Roy took a deep breath, then let it out in a long sigh. "Al, why don't you take Kagome and Shippo for a tour of the building"

"I'm not leaving you alone with-"

"I promise you, Kagome. I just want to have a man to man talk"

"hmm..." Kagome seemed extremely suspicious of that promise

"gods...Ed's promise to protect you reminded me of how I was with your mother before the war in Ishvall"

"ok...but if you try to-"

"you have my word as a state alchemist." he said, holding up his right palm, "nothing will happen, I won't even move from this chair."

"I'll see you soon, Ed" Kagome smiled, kissing Ed on the cheek. then made her way to the floor, and plucked Shippo from the bunk.

"hey, Al."

"yes, brother?"

"here, take Shippo to the candy store, I did promise to get him some, but since Roy wants to talk to me, I can't go now." Ed smiled, handing his brother some money

"I'd be glad to!"

"YAY!" Shippo cheered, then hopped onto Al's shoulder, and asked hm, "so what kinds of candy are here?" Shippo excited voice faded as they left for the candy store

"you know Kagome's pretty furious at you for tryin' to kill me like that" Ed told Roy with a scowl

"I know..." Roy sighed, "look, Fullmetal. someday when you're a father you'll understand. I just...hearing my baby girl was-"

"I would never hurt her on purpose, you know. I'm not that kind of guy, I thought you'd know that much by now."

"I would ask you to take a walk with me, but I promised to stay on this chair" Roy smirked.

"I get it, you just want the best for Kagome, and you didn't think it was me."

"heheh, actually, I think I was a bit jealous"

"jealous?"

"she gave you more attention than her own father. it just felt like I was being cheated." Roy admitted

"well, you haven't been all too nice. that's probably why"

"no, Kagome and I had a falling out the night Sora called and wanted you, Al, Winry, and I to pick up Kagome and bring her to Central. I think I had insulted Sesshomaru and didn't apologize..."

"you didn't realize you insulted him?"

"I didn't see how mad she got, she seemed fine." Roy shrugged

"look, Colonel, I really do love Kagome. I've never felt like this before. when I'm keeping her warm at night it feels...it feels like everything is ok, like my mom is watching me and is happy to see Kagome and I together" Ed's voice cracked once, and one tear rolled down his cheek

"Ed, answer me something, don't think, just tell me what your first thought would be. this is a hypothetical"

"ok..."

"say, Scar has Kagome cornered, and you could save her if-"

"what kind of question is that? of course I-"

"let me finish. you could save her if you sacrificed your human arm, and as a result of saving her, you had to get another automail arm."

"heh, automail ain't so bad, it'd be more than worth it to save Kagome. I would die if it meant she lived"

"really? you would do that?"

"why do you sound so surprised? of course I would! besides, I'm sure Al would-"

"Al's relationship isn't hanging in the balance of this talk"

"oh, great. this is one of THOSE talks.." Ed groaned.

"I have a few more questions. if your answer is satisfying enough, I'll let you continue to see my daughter, if not, I'll...find some other way to keep her safe and happy"

"sounds good to me"

"ok...-" Roy had an evil smirk, "ok, Ed. I have a good question for you. say Kagome is dead-"

"what kind of-"

"let me finish! god...say Kagome is dead, and you, for some unknown reason, have a philosopher's stone. but the one you have can only revive one person. do you revive your mother or Kago-"

"I'd love to have my mom back, but I'd choose Kagome. heh, I'm sure you thought I'd be torn between them. but my mom would want me to be happy, anyway."

"good. you answered right." Roy smiled. more and more Ed began looking like the kind of guy he had imagined would be with his daughter.

"anything else?"

"here's a classic man to man question. what are your intentions towards my daughter"

"I promised to protect her with my life. she can't sleep without me, and I love knowning that, when we were little, sometimes Al would have a nightmare, and wake me up to ask if he could sleep next to me."

"I have one more for now. say some how, Kagome got intoxicated. probably...some kind of gas or something. and she was acted weird, what do you do?"

"what KIND of weird?" Ed eyed Roy suspiciously.

"weird like she wants to have sex."


	10. Chapter 10

"I would try to snap her out of it, as far as I see it, there's no other option than that, she wouldn't be in her right mind, I would never take advantage of her. I want my first time to be after we're married, and some day we will be, but I'm not rushing. I want to enjoy whatever time I have with Kagome." Ed yawned slightly, he felt so bored without Kagome around.

"I'll keep my eye on you Fullmetal, just to make sure you keep your promises."

"does that mean I can go catch up with Kagome, Al, and Shippo?"

"yes, dismissed." Roy said, and left the room. he felt a slight breeze moments after he was in the hall, and chuckled to himself.

-xxXX*^with Kagome, Al, and Shippo^*XXxx-

"ni nuff noo, nuntle-Al!" Shippo exclaimed with a large disk shaped sucker rendering his sentiment near impossible to understand

"I have no idea what you just said, but you're welcome Shippo"

"my, my. aren't you pretty?" a man with sunglasses smirked, stepping out in front of Kagome.

"y-you are not talking to me." Kagome laughed incredulously

"you don't think you're-"

"I know I'm pretty, but I'm also...NOT ON THE MARKET!" Kagome yelled as she gave the creep a right hook, her fist coated with spirit energy. giving him a slight burn

"WH-WHAT ARE YOU?!"

"she's mine is what she i-..you again?" Ed was mentally thanking the stars that he had gotten to them so fast, his arm around her waist, pulling her close. but after recognizing the guy, he rolled his eyes, and sighed, "didn't you learn your lesson when you tried this on Winry?"

"Winry? who's Winry?"

"the blonde that nailed you with the wrench." Ed deadpanned

"oh, her. she's a lunatic!"

"no, you're a creep! god, sneaking up on a girl while she's out on a walk with her family? gah...look, I'm sor-" Kagome apologized

"don't apologize to him! he'll try this stunt on you again if he has a chance. listen punk, do you know know who I am?"

"short?"

"...I'M NOT SHORT! I'M THE FULLMETAL ALCHEMIST!"

"a-a state alchemist?!"

"yeah, and this is my girlfriend! so LAY OFF! I could have you arrested, but I have better things to do than to babysit you." he pulled Kagome closer slightly. "but if I hear you were harassing any more girls, I'll hunt you down, and DRAG you to central myself."

"you know my father, too. what was his alchemy again, Ed" Kagome said dramatically

"fire"

"oh, yeah! that right, he's the flame alchemist."

"th-the flame alchemist?"

"yeah. but don't worry I'm sure he wouldn't burn you if you stop harassing women" Kagome smiled a sickeningly sweet smile at the creep

"come on, Kagome. let's go, I want to show you around Amestris"

"yeah, I'd like that. thank you for coming to my rescue, Ed." Kagome giggled, kissing the alchemist's cheek. it was about five minutes later that something donned on her. 'girlfriend?' "Ed, why did you tell him we were dating? you never even asked yet"

"ok then let me fix that. will you go out with me, Kagome?"

"of course I will! but won't Roy be mad?"

"he asked me about stuff"

"stuff?"

"yeah, he gave me a few scenarios and asked how I'd handle 'em...you know...-stuff"

"oh, geez, he had THAT talk with you. heh, well, at least he's trying to accept us this time instead of trying to kill you"

"how did you know?"

"he did the same thing to Inuyasha one day, he found out I was... "romantically involved with a demon" as he called it. but Inuyasha technically is a HALF demon."

"I love you, Kagome" Ed whispered, pulling her close

"heh, I love you too, Ed." Kagome giggled, leaning into his side. "so, what first?"

"what do you want to see first? I don't have to be back at Central until sundown at the earliest."

"we can go back before sundown. it'll gives more time to just snuggle before going to sleep." Kagome smiled, resting her head on Ed's shoulder as the group walked around aimlessly

"sounds good to me"

"YEAH! I LIKE TO SNUGGLE WITH MAMA!" cheered Shippo

"now you'll be extra snuggly warm"

"yeah! cause of papa!" he smiled, pointing at Ed

"yeah...because of your papa." a tear rolled down her cheek, 'he's so happy to have a father again, it warms my heart so much. thank you, Ed. thank you so much...'

"Kagome? what's wrong?"

"no-nothing. absolutely nothing." Kagome sighed happily

"then why were you crying?"

"it just...Shippo is so so happy to have a father again, it just warms my heart to see him like this. you don't know how much it means to me, Ed. thank you, thank you so much"

"no problem" Ed puffed out his chest, and smirked like a goof for a few long moments. he turned to his brother, "so, what did Shippo get at the candy store?"

"he got one of those rainbow-colored disk ones, I forget what they're called"

"I like to call them rainbow swirls!"

"I should have guessed you'd get that, more candy for your money!"

"it's just what mama would always bring me when I've been good while she had to come to this time, sometimes if I was really good, I'd get a rainbow swirl AND a toy!"

"yeah, I had to keep a small stock of candy and toys in my bag for Shippo, I just loved seeing that look on his face when I've give him his reward."

"Inuyasha didn't get them a lot."

"yeah, you're a lot younger, but you've learned something he never did."

"what's that, Kagome?"

"to always do what mama says! even if you think it's silly or boring! and to be on your VERY BEST when she gets more supplies."

"smart kid" Ed chuckled to himself, plucking the fox from Kagome's shoulder, "how'd you get so smart?"

"mama taught me!"

"she did a good job. maybe when your old enough I'll see if you can learn some alchemy. though, you'll need a transmutation circle, but I can show you how to make them too"

"REALLY? YOU PROMISE PAPA?"

"of course, I promise. you're mine now, and so is your mama."

"how, sentimental..."

"wh-who's there?" Kagome stammered, cowering in Ed's grasp

"what do you want, Lust? you can't have Kagome! I won't let you take her from me. not now, not ever."

"oh, and I was really hoping I wouldn't have to resort to this... GLUTTONY!"

"can I eat the small furry one? he looks yummy!"

"MAMA!" Shippo whimpered, hiding between Ed and Kagome

"Al I need you to protect Shippo."

"yeah, of course"

"you can eat the little furry one, Gluttony, but ONLY the little furry one."

"yes!" the chubby homonculus lumbered forward, his tongue hanging out like an over-heated dog, "come to Gluttony, you little furry snack!"

"Mama...Papa...!" Shippo whimpered, clinging to Kagome.

Ed clapped his hands and slammed them to the ground, summoning a fist to come flying out of the pavement and nail Gluttony in the face, disorienting him. "IF YOU TAKE ANOTHER STEP, GLUTTONY, I'M GOING TO MAKE SURE YOU NEVER SEE LUST!" he yelled at the chubby homonculus

"Ed, what does that...Gluttony, want with Shippo?"

"he eats everything he can, people included. he's always hungry. you see that tattoo on his tongue? it's an ouroboros tattoo, if you see anyone with that tattoo, I want to to put up a barrier and run for Central if I'm not around for any reason. if it's anything like the barrier from the train they won't be able to hurt you." Ed looked at Lust and Gluttony, "you BASTARDS! if you hurt Kagome or Shippo, I swear you will beg me to have mercy on you." the blonde alchemist was practically shaking with rage. "that furry little guy is my adopted son! don't you DARE try to eat him!"

"L-...LUUUUST!" Gluttony wailed, running to Lust as fast as he could, and cowered behind her leg.


	11. Chapter 11

ok, I'm so sorry. I somehow cut out some of the plot, I'll do my very very best to add more stuff by the end of the month, at the latest. I can guarantee to have SOMETHING new by the end of the year. (meaning April 2016)

* * *

Gluttony whimpered. "no hurt Lust..no hurt lust!"

"it's alright, Gluttony. you'll get to eat both the miko and her little fox soon enough." Lust cooed, patting him on the head

"but he said-"

"Fullmetal will no longer be a problem by then." she continued to pat Gluttony on the head reassuringly, "you shouldn't upset Gluttony, you know. he can become quite ravenous when provoked"

"I know that. but you see now I have more to protect than just my brother. you should know my alchemy can become unstoppable if you've threatened someone close to me." Ed's grip on Kagome was extremely possessive. he was itching to fight them, but he couldn't let go of her for even a second, they probably wanted him to go running in headfirst like he always would, but now...now he had to keep a level head, he had Kagome and Shippo to protect, not just Alphonse.

"come on, Ed. let's just go back to Central. you can show me around Amestris later. their aura is...it's making me feel sick...we need to leave." Kagome said, looking ever-so-slightly pale.

"..." Ed glared at Lust and Gluttony, before letting out a growl, he whispered to Kagome, "can you put a barrier around the four of us while we head back? just to make sure Lust doesn't hit us from behind?"

"yeah, but you'll have to carry me there, I don't have enough energy to hold up a mobile barrier, AND run."

"I was hoping you'd let me carry you." Ed chuckled, scooping her into his arms.

"hmm." Kagome sighed happily as she held Shippo close, and conjured up a barrier.

"Al! let's get back to Central before Kagome's barrier fades!"

"right!" Al nodded and the group took off running.

"thank you for protecting us, Ed...Al. it means a lot to me. wow, I'm...so tired"

"just hang in there a bit longer, we're almost at Central. just stay awake and I'll let you snuggle as close to me as you want all day"

"I like the sound of that..I'll try my best."

"Brother! what's the führer doing?" Al said, noticing King Bradley standing out front with a soft smile

"...avoid him...he's...he has the same aura...it's...-his is...trying to strangle me...it's -wheeze- hard...to breathe -wheeze-...E-Ed"

"Kagome, hang in there!" he ran past the fuhrer and inside. he kept running until they reached their room. Kagome sucked in a large gasp of air, and coughed a few times, "thank you, E...d..." Kagome slipped into unconsciousness in Ed's arms.

"Al, get hawkeye."

"I'm staying here with you and mama" Shippo said hopping from Al onto Ed's shoulder, "papa? thanks for getting mama to safety."

"I couldn't stay and fight. I have to protect you and Kagome. it was different when it was just Al and I."

"yeah?"

"Al can fight really good, and with this armor body he doesn't get hurt, he just has to be careful of the blood seal. so, I have less to worry about, but with you and Kagome, I don't want you to get cut or bruised or hurt. same with Kagome."

"before he was killed, my papa would talk about how he would rather run than fight more after I was born. he didn't want me to get hurt."

"exactly." Ed ruffled Shippo's hair affectionately, "you're a smart kid."

"mama tells me that too!" he beamed pointing at Kagome

soon the clanking footsteps of his brother were heard approaching.

"sit on the bunk, Shippo"

"ok, papa!"

'papa...' Ed felt a small sense of pride from that.

"Ed, what happened?" Riza gasped, her expression soft with worry

"Fullmetal!" Roy growled, his expression, however was hard with anger

"I can only run so fast you know!" Ed barked, defending himself

"what happened to her?"

"the homonculi have these...-she called them, "auras" they made her feel sick. she put a barrier around us while we ran back here. we saw the-..." 'so, is the führer a homonculus?' Ed was shocked, the government was ran by a HOMONCULUS?!

"saw the what?"

"the fuhrer... Kagome started to wheeze, she said his aura was just like Lust and Gluttony's, only much stronger, and that it was trying to strangle her."

"the FUHRER?!" Roy shut the door and locked it. "Ed you're SURE she was talking about-"

"I saw him too, Colonel. he was just standing there, smiling at us."

"oh god...so the fuhrer is...-oh god no..." Roy sunk to his knees, this is horrible!

"is she ok, Hawkeye?"

"she's breathing normally, that's good. her pulse is..." Riza paused to check it, "...normal. that's good too. let's take her to the infirmary just to be safe."

"but what about the fuhrer?" Al asked

"you and Fullmetal-" Roy began

"no! I'm NOT leaving her for hours on end! she could be attacked at any moment! you can take away my state license, I don't care! you can try to throw me out, I'll find a way back in! there is nothing that can keep me away from her."

"even if you have to pee?" Roy asked, smirking slightly

"...-A-Al will be with me too...I'll just..make it quick.."

"besides, we all know Kagome can't sleep without brother to keep her warm" Al noted

"gahh...fine. but if she gets hurt AT ALL while she's in the infirmary. it's YOUR ass on the line, Fullmetal"

"for once I can agree with you on something." Ed replied as the 5 made their way down to the infirmary. "if something happened to her because of me, I couldn't live with myself. it'd be like LETTING Al's blood seal be broken. if anyone tries to hurt her, they'll have to get through Al and I. there's no way in hell I'll let that happen."

"keep acting like that and I'll have no reason to try and keep you two apart" Roy laughed, patting Ed on the shoulder

"when she was asleep in the train and Envy tried to hit brother Kagome had a barrier up and Envy's hand got burned pretty badly."

"let's hope she'll have it up while she's in the infirmary as last line of defense." Riza said

"it was selective too, the barrier, after Envy had tried to hurt brother and got hurt because of it, Lust told Kagome she enjoyed meeting her and gave her a pat on the head, and wasn't hurt."

"yeah, let's just hope it responds to violent intent not just general anger" Ed commented, making sure he had a secure hold of the miko.

"ah! I just remembered, you were so mad at Envy for calling you short, but you didn't get hurt."

"hey yeah, that's right! we'll have to make some notes or something on it later, Al. it could help us with our search later on. maybe we'll be able to transmute an alchemic version of it"

"that'd be great!" Al replied

"especially against the homonculi"

"yeah"

"I just can't believe the Führer is one of them" Roy mumbled to himself

-xxXX**^the Führer's office^**XXxx-

"so...that little girl with Fullmetal IS indeed a miko, eh?"

"yeah" Envy grumbled, both of his hands wrapped in bandages. "my hands STILL hurt thanks to her little barrier thing"

"and it seems to be selective." added Lust, she was dressed in a pair of skinny jeans and a deep purple turtle-neck shirt. she couldn't risk her tattoo being seen, as it would blow her cover. "she can't be touched behind it, not by force anyway. it won't burn if there's not malicious intent. I tried to be nice and took no damage" she said, holding up her undamaged hands, "but, Envy, here, tried to hit Fullmetal in the jaw. you can see what that earned him."

"it still hurts. why I don't get is, why won't my stone heal it? that happened two days ago! they STILL, HURT"

"yes...that's quite the feat. that could pose as a great problem in the future. we may need to try distracting those protecting her, and turn her into one of our sacrifices, her price will hopefully render that power null."

"that's a lot to gamble, Wrath." Envy glared. "can't we just take her with us while she sleeps or something?"

"no. from what I've heard, she only sleeps when in Fullmetal's arms. talk with Father, and tell me what he says, I won't allow some wretched girl to ruin our plans"

"sure, whatever. Lust, get the door." Envy growled, changing into one of his central soldier disguises.

-xxXX**^in the infirmary**XXxx-

a couple of days had passed, and Kagome was recovering well thanks to Ed, Al, and Shippo. "mnng..." she groaned softly, waking up from a nap

"hey, sleepy head." Ed smiled gently at the miko

"hey.." Kagome smiled sleepily, she stretched her back then nuzzled into the alchemist. "hmm, I love these moments...so warm, so perfect."

"how are you feeling, mama?" Shippo asked

"much better."

"while you were asleep, that nice Hawkeye lady got me some crayons and paper! I drew a picture of my new family! even grampa's in it!" the kit beamed, holding up a piece of paper. childishly drawn figures with names underneath each figure were shown smiling on the paper.

"oh! it's beautiful, Shippo! I love it!" Kagome cooed, she felt overjoyed.

"haha! I especially like how you drew Al! best drawing I've ever seen! you gotta show it to him!" Ed laughed

"yeah, I wanna see it!" Al beamed. Shippo scampered to the end of the bed and proudly held up the paper above his head. "AH! wow! I look like...like a super hero!" in the drawing Al had a cape and a heroic smile.

"cause papa says nothing can hurt you! so you've gotta be some kind of a super hero, Uncle Al!"

"oh, Shippo.." Al would have cried tears of joy if he was physically able to.

"heh, feels great, huh, Al?"

"you're a super hero too! woosh! woosh!" the suit of armor laughed, holding Shippo up and spinning around so the small fox could pretend he was flying like superman.

"MAMA, LOOK! I CAN FLY! WEEEEEE!"

Kagome couldn't help but giggle and tear up slightly. she hadn't seen Shippo so happy in a long while. "I'm really going to enjoy amestrian life." she nuzzled Ed and watched Alphonse play with Shippo. even going so far as to letting the small fox to put on his head and scamper around, or...at least try to. it was simply adorable.

"you're really lovin' your nephew, huh, Al?"

"you bet I am! Shippo is so cool!"

"I can do magic! it's not as cool as yours or papa's. but it's magic!"

"I saw some of what you can do when you were showing off at the training ring. it's pretty cool if you ask me!"

"yeah?" Shippo asked

"yeah!" Al smiled

"YEAH!" he fox cheered, running in circles for a quick moment.

"your brother is a great uncle, Ed" Kagome sighed happily

"yeah" Ed smirked, watching the two laugh and play.

"and you're a great father"

"ya think so?"

"I know so." she smiled, snuggling against the alchemist. "Shippo adores his papa."

the kit decided to scurry up the bed post and sit on Ed's gut. smiling brightly, he said, "YEAH! I HAVE THE BESTEST PAPA EEVVEERR!" he held up his tiny furry hands as if try and express the enormity of his words and the love he held for the alchemist who was his adoptive father.

"heh, I've never met such a good kid before." Ed smiled, ruffling Shippo's furry head.

"I couldn't help but hear Shippo drew something with the crayons I got him. can I see it?" Riza asked, coming into the room

"IT'S MY NEW FAMILY!" Shippo beamed, getting the drawing holding it up for Hawkeye to see.

"oh, it's beautiful. heh! I like Al's cape. he's the super hero, isn't he?"

"YEAH! papa says nothing hurts him!"

"you're such a sweet kid, Shippo. hey, you wanna meet a very special friend of mine?"

"can I?"

"who is it?" Kagome asked

"Black Hayate" Riza replied

"her pet dog" Ed whispered to Kagome

"ok, but don't be gone too long, and be on your best behavior, Shippo"

"I will! I promise, mama!"

"I'll take you to him, he's very special, and very friendly."


	12. Chapter 12

"you said his name is..black Hayate, right?"

"yes, but everyone just calls him, Hayate"

"ok! does he like magic?"

"I don't know, you can show him a tiny bit."

"ok!"

"Hayate...! I'm back. come here, boy."

"BAR! BAR!" Hayate barked happily, running over to Riza, then sat in front of her, wagging his tail.

Shippo cocked his head to the side in confusion. "say that again" he said.

"BAR!" Hayate barked, standing up.

"I thought that's what you said..."

"you...understand him?"

"yeah, of course I do!" Shippo smiled, hopping down from Riza's shoulder to the floor, he put his palm on Hayate's head, and scratched just behind his ear, "that better?"

"bar!" Hayate gave a short happy bark moments later.

"his ear was itchy, and he couldn't quite reach it."

"does he like it here?"

"BAR! BAR!" Hayate hopped up and down for a moment.

"mhm, he loves it! he says, "yeah! I love you, mama, Hawkeye"."

Riza gasped for a moment. Hayate knew her military name! she smiled softly, and picked the dog up. "oh, Hayate. you're so smart!" that's when she had an idea. she smirked, "Shippo, you can understand him just as well as you can understand me, right?"

"yeah!"

"ok, I've wanted to know something for a long time." she looked at her dog, "Hayate, does Roy feed you his food when I'm not looking?"

"... bar. ruff." the dog barked

"he says, yeah, a lot"

"oh, I knew it, I KNEW it. hey, Shippo. can you understand ALL animals? or just dogs?" Riza shook her head.

"I knew a cat demon named Kirara before Lord Sesshomaru brought me here." Shippo smiled

"I'm going to enjoy having you around, Shippo. it'll be nice to be able to keep tabs on Roy when I'm not around"

"you'll have to ask my mama, first"

"of course I will. besides you'd just be Hayate's translator."

"oh! well, then I'm sure my mama wouldn't mind!"

they spent the next few minutes playing with Hayate.

"let's get you back, ok?" Riza said, picking Shippo up.

"ok! I like you, you're a nice lady!"

"yeah?"

"yeah, and Hayate likes you too!" he beamed as he let Riza carry him back to the infirmary.

"...really?"

"yeah! right before we left, he told me, tell mama I said I love her"

"oh, Hayate..." Riza sighed, she didn't think her dog loved her THAT much.

they two arrived at the infirmary minutes later.

"-yelling, "WHO'RE YOU CALLING SO SMALL YOU COULD CRUSH LIKE AN ANT?!" heheh, he even once told this, Fletcher kid, "sit down, you're not allowed to be taller than me" HAHAHA." Havok laughed

"really? I didn't know Ed had such a height complex. not that I really noticed a height difference between him and other guys really."

"I'm not short..." Ed grumbled, pulling the miko closer.

"what's going on?"

"hmm? oh, Jean, here is introducing himself."

"you're not trying to hit on her, are you, Lieutenant Havoc?"

"eh? what's with the formality, Riza?"

"because the colonel no doubt within ear shot"

"...why do you have to spoil my fun, Lieutenant?" Roy whined pathetically. "I was spying on Havoc..."

"oh, I'm sorry, Sir! I was just assuming you were nearby" she laughed, "but you're in trouble."

"trouble?"

"you've been feeding Hayate when you're not supposed to, Hayate told me himself. of course, I had a little help." Shippo smiled innocently in agreement.

"I like him, he's a nice doggy!" the kit beamed

"huh? why can't I flirt with her?"

"for one thing, she's not available!" Ed glared at Jean, and pulled her against him possessively

"awww, don't tell me you called dibs..." he stared at Ed with a dejected look

"I've always loved Ed. ever since I knew him when we were little" Kagome pressed her palm to Ed's chest and snuggled into his side.

"oh..."

"we can be friends, though! but you can't smoke around Shippo. I don't know how it'll affect him."

"what do you mean?"

"Shippo, could you come here, sweetie?"

"ok! I'm coming, mama!"

"M-mama? you're a mother?"

"adoptive, geez, how many times do I have to explain that?"

"well it'd be more obvious if he knew Shippo isn't human" Ed laughed

"isn't human? what?" Havoc was confused, 'what does he mean, "not human"?'

"I'm a fox demon! do you have alchemy like my papa and uncle?"

"no, Havoc doesn't have alchemy." Ed smirked.

"woah, a fox DEMON?! that's pretty cool. and it does explain why your feet look-."

"my feet?" Shippo sounded confused as he looked at his feet. "is there something wrong with them?"

"nonononono! they're just...NEW! hehe, I've never met a fox demon. I've only seen chimera's"

"what's a chimera?"

"make something up, he'd never recover from learning the truth at his age.." Ed whispered into Kagome's ear.

"it's..."

"it's the kind of demons we have in amestris, but they're not too common, and usually not friendly, so you should probably avoid them if you see them, unless your mama says they're ok." Havok said, covering for the miko.

"oh..! ok! I'll remember that!" Shippo smiled, he hopped onto the floor and began to draw a new picture.

"your break should be over by now, lieutenant." Roy crossed his arms over his chest.

-xxXX**^Lust and Envy^**XXxx-

"Lust? Envy? why are you here? shouldn't you be keeping track of what's going on with that Fullmetal boy?" Father asked, surprised by their sudden visit.

"we've hit a...COMPLICATION, you might call it." Lust said, folding her arms

"yeah, I'll say! that miko bitch burned my hands days ago and look at them! they took until this morning to heal!" Envy growled, holding up his pink-ish, and slightly tender, hands

Father's eyes widened and he leaned forward in his chair. "why do you have such scars?"

"she's a miko, Father. she had a barrier up around her and Fullmetal. when Envy attempted to seperate the two, you can see what happened to his right hand, then he got angry and tried to punch Fullmetal, which is why his left is much more damaged. furthermore, Wrath told us she only sleeps when she's in his arms, so it'll be difficult to get her without raising alarm."

"hmm, tell me more of this barrier..." he leaned forward in his chair.

"it was selective. as you can see I am unharmed while Envy is hurt." Lust slipped off her gloves for a few moments to show she was completely unharmed

"damn wench is gonna pay for burning me"

"it's not only that. first off, Envy only tried to grab her, and she, obviously, had no intention of going anywhere with us, so the barrier burned Envy. then he got mad and tried to punch Fullmetal with his other hand, and as a result got burned even worse." Lust took a step forward then continued, "afterwards, I tried to see if it would harm me if I tried to be nice, I gave her a pat on the head, and told her I enjoyed meeting her."

"hmm, was the boy inside the barrier during all this?"

"yes," Lust nodded

"and was he not hurt?"

"not even when he got mad at Envy for calling him short."

"this is quite interesting...first things first, Envy. come here, let me heal your hands, I can't have you hurt on the job."

"yeah, sure." Envy walked up, and held out his bandaged hands.

Father stuck out his arm over them, and concentrated for a moment, red bolts come from his palm and danced around the homunculus's hands. completely healing his hands.

"the hell? how'd you heal me when my own stone couldn't?!"

"hmm, bring me this miko at once, I don't care how you do it, but I want her here, ALIVE." Father snarled, slamming his fist against the arm rest of his chair. "she must have done something with that, "barrier" of hers."

"yes, of course." Lust nodded. she and Envy left.

"see? my stone won't heal 'em either!" Envy scowled, "at least the burns don't hurt too bad right now. makes disguising myself a pain in the ass, though."

"bring me this miko at once, I don't care how you do it, but I want her here, ALIVE."

"yes, of course." Lust nodded. she and Envy left.

"I hate that little bitch so much, I can't wait to rough her up. if I'm lucky I'll get to kill her at some point!" Envy growled

"just be careful of that barrier she has." Father called out as lust and envy left.

"hey, do you think she could...you know, run out of energy?"

"...-that's an idea worth testing, Envy!" Lust smirked. "let's report back to Wrath and go from there."

"what bugs me is I thought our stones made us immortal!"

"perhaps even a philosopher's stone has a weakness..."

"I guess..!" Envy grumbled, rolling his eyes. and shrugging in irritation

"just think about how devastated Fullmetal will be when we get her."

"ohhh! yeah-hah!" Envy laughed, he loved to harass that short-tempered Elric boy.


	13. Chapter 13

**WOO! I'm on a roll! already way through typing up the next chapter.**

**it'd help if you guys could give me ideas for events to take place in later chapters**

* * *

they went straight to the führer's office and old him what Father had said.

"how, exactly, do you two plan on retrieving the miko?" Wrath asked, his chin resting on a his inter-weaved hands.

"I'm going to go and check out what she's doing." Envy growled, he hated having nothing to do.

"you know...that actually might not be the best plan, Envy. I just remembered something.." Lust struck a deep-thought pose, "if my memory serves, she said our "aura" made her feel sick. if you go in disguise, she might recognize you and give them another thing to use against us."

"alright, then what the hell ARE we gonna do? just sit around twiddling our thumbs?! we've gotta turn the miko into one of our sacrifices! but we can't just take her while everyone's asleep if she's always in that runt's arms!" Envy ranted.

"hmm, I'm not quite sure...but we'll figure something out. but first and foremost, we'll have to be more careful about how often we send you out among the central soldiers. we just simply can't afford to have the miko recognize you while you're in disguise. it's bad enough that she has that barrier."

"yes...I must admit, that's quite the spectacular little defense she has, but it can't hold up indefinitely, just as alchemy has its limits, so too does the body and spirit." Wrath smirked, then added with a chuckle, "this will be fun, feels like I have a new puzzle to solve, marvelous."

"that's right!" Lust announced, "when Gluttony and I confronted her, she had said our auras made her sick, so Fullmetal asked her to put up a barrier so I couldn't attack them from behind as they ran. I believe she said that she couldn't make a mobile barrier and still have the energy to run so he'd have to carry her. given that bit of information, my thinking is that either our, "aura" weakens her a small degree or having a, "mobile" barrier takes immense energy, perhaps even all of it. but one thing is definite, she DOES have a limit in terms of the barrier. but the real question is, is that limit to how long the barrier stays up before vanishing, or fading in power? can she only project that barrier around herself? or can it be placed a distance away? that in itself brings a question. if she can place it a distance, what's the range? does it take MORE energy? how long would a barrier like that last? there is just so much we don't know about the limitations of her power."

Wrath smiled at Lust, "I can see you're truly taking the time to think it all out, I'm proud of you lust. given what we know and what we don't; our first course of action should be to investigate and gather the answers we need"

"how in the hell are we gonna do that without getting ourselves BURNED?!" Envy barked. "because in case you forgot, that barrier can actually deal some decent damage to us! not to mention it doesn't heal right away like it should!"

"how long has it been since then, Envy?" Wrath asked, leaning forward slightly

"huh? oh, uh..." he paused for a moment to think, "somewhere between a week and a half to two weeks"

"it must have been a second degree burn, hmm, my wife had gotten one once, it around that long to heal."

"are you kidding me?!" Envy yelled.

"hmm, I think I might be able to explain it. mikos have what we would call, "holy energy". perhaps since our birth was through a taboo among alchemists, that same, "holy energy" classifies us as demons. it's the best explanation that I can come up with.." Lust hummed contemplatively

"but it doesn't explain why our stones won't heal it!"

"maybe the holy power purifies our stones, let's just hope that purification isn't permanent." Wrath sighed, "if it is permanent that could be a major setback"

"why don't we find out?" Lust smirked, extending his nails to nick Envy's shoulder just enough for a tiny droplet of blood to form.

"OW! what the hell, Lust?!"

"oh calm down, it's only a tiny scratch, we just need to see if your stone will heal it" they waited for a full minute, but no sparks danced across Envy's shoulder. they all stared at his shoulder in disbelief. Wrath opened a drawer in his desk and rummaged through it for a moment. "here" he said, tossing Envy a small philosopher's stone.

"thanks. I'll be needing this." he tossed it into his mouth and swallowed it whole. red sparks immediately began to dance around his shoulder, repairing the small cut. "how...she ruined my stone!" Envy growled.

"you have a new stone, and at least we know how to deal with the after-effects of that barrier." Lust sighed

"I wonder if they'll figure out that she purified your stone..." Wrath mused. "I think that's enough for today's meeting. you two go out and see if you can find anything out, but try to keep conttact to that barrier to a minimum, that was my last stone, I'll have to go and get some more later."

"right." the two said, about to leave.

"and Envy. you especially need to avoid the miko, if she can sense our..."auras" then she might be able to know if you're around even if you're in disguise."

"yeah, yeah, I got it. avoid the miko." Envy groaned, red lightning scrolled down his form as he turned into a central soldier.

-xxXX**^Kagome and Ed; the following night^**XXxx-

Kagome had been released from the infirmary, and was currently snuggling with Ed and Shippo in their room in the barracks. 'ahh...life. is. sweet...' she thought to herself, nuzzling her face into his chest.

"you're pretty snuggly today" Ed chuckled

"mmm, can't help it...you're so warm..." Kagome hummed.

"I'm super glad I went with Lord Sesshomaru to come here." Shippo said, sitting up.

"yeah, me too, sweetie. the day I left Kyoto for Amestris, I was so worried that you'd somehow find a way through the well after I'd left."

"especially since I have a papa again!" he nuzzled against Ed for a moment. "I love you, Papa..."

"heh, love you too, Shippo. you're a real good kid." Ed laughed, ruffling the fur on his little head. "you also have a great uncle, too. don't forget about Alphonse!"

"YEAH! HE'S THE BESTEST UNCLE EVER!"

"you're a lot of fun to play with, Shippo." Al said happily.

there was a silence, not an awkward one, for a short while, "hey, Ed? tell me more about those homonculi. why did they try to take me?"

"huh? homonculi? what's that, Mama?"

"I guess you'd understand them as demons." Ed hummed, "I don't really know why they wanted you, maybe it was to get a rise outta me, or...they wanted your miko powers. it's hard to say. but the thing that I'm really curious about is that barrier of yours." he sat up. "it's really interesting, do you think you could give Al and I more info about it? our thinking is that if we can understand it enough, we'll be able to make an alchemic version, and that would be an invaluable advantage to have over the homonculi."

"uh, yeah, sure. I'll do my best." Kagome feelt slightly confused about it, but agreed nonetheless.

"hey, brother?" Alphonse spoke up.

"yeah? what is it, Al?"

"I was thinking...when Envy was burned by Kagome's barrier, his stone didn't heal it. why do you think that happened?"

"ya know, that's a good point, Al!" Ed smiled as they all sat on the floor in a big circle. Ed and Al each had a notebook and pencil. "ok, what do we know so far?"


End file.
